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10 Ways to Cope With Toxic Family Members

Growing up I lived with a toxic family member.
I know this family member loved me, but they did not have some necessary life skills.
There were times of fun and joy, but there were also times I don’t like to remember. I experienced frequent harsh criticisms, name-calling, rejection, and was held to unreasonable expectations.
Shame and guilt were the motivating forces for me to behave, even though I often could not predict what would set off this family member’s temper. I endured explosive, sometimes violent, bursts of rage.
A significant amount of my childhood was confusing, sad, and frightening. It still affects me to this day. Unfortunately as a child, I did not know how inappropriate many of these actions were.
I also did not have the skills to deal with this unacceptable treatment. Now as an adult, the two of us have been able to somewhat repair our connection.
This did require time away from one another once I was able to move out. It also required that both of us implement changes in our own behavior.
We don’t always get along, and there are still hurtful remarks made sometimes, but I am now able to have a generally pleasant and mostly supportive relationship with